Wasilla Massacre: Ex-Con Kills Four Of His Relatives, 6-Year-Old Boy Survives Thanks To Defective Bullet

An Alaska teen killed all his four relatives on Monday, days after being released from jail. The suspect first opened fire on his cousin living near Wasilla before killing his aunt and two cousins in their Palmer home.

Malachi Maxon was released from jail on Nov. 23 with an electronic monitoring device, a device used by authorities to track him down. Since his release, he had stayed with his aunt Kimora Buster in Palmer.

Police said Maxon started his killing spree by going to the home of his 18-year-old cousin, Cody Roehl, near Wasilla at around 3 p.m. on Monday. A few minutes later, the police responded to a 3:13 p.m. call saying there was a suicide at Roehl’s home.

After killing his cousin, Maxon allegedly stole a vehicle and a pistol and fled Roehl’s home to go to his aunt’s home in Palmer. There, the suspect allegedly broke into the home and shot 43-year-old Buster and his two cousins, 7-year-old Ellison Buster and 10-year-old Sienna Buster. Both children were dead on the spot while Buster died at a hospital nearby.

Police said another unidentified 6-year-old boy was found alive in the crime scene. The boy, Ellison’s brother, was spared thanks to defective bullets, said the authorities.

“The scene revealed spent cartridge casings outside the broken front window, and the number of bullets fired at each person appeared to be about the same, with the exception of Ellison,” said the police. “In the bed where Ellison and AB were found, there were several more bullet defects than there were with the other bodies that indicated Maxon was likely trying to shoot AB, who was sleeping near the wall.”

The authorities arrested Malachi Maxon after finding the vehicle he had stolen. When the state troopers pulled over the vehicle and found the teenager inside, Maxon attempted to escape and even tried to take the hoister of one of the troopers.

Maxon is facing four counts of first-degree murder charges, one attempted first-degree murder, second-degree theft, first-degree vehicle theft, third-degree assault, and first-degree attempted escape.